Genshin Impact: Mondstadt Alter

Act 1 Chapter 1:

Awakening


[Morgan.]

I hear someone calling out my name. I want to wake up, but I can't. My eyelids feel heavy, and I can't move and feel my limbs or even my fingers, I feel paralyzed. What happens?

It's dark here, I can't see nor feel anything. I can hear around my surrounding, but barely without catching even a word. I don't understand what's happening. I'm relieved but at the same time, I feel so tired. It makes me want to fall into a deep slumber. Since I couldn't do anything, I might as well.

"... Bring him to the…!"

"He's soaking with…"

"We can use that room and lay him on the bed! The sisters will take care of him."

"We need to change his clothes too, we can't let him keep wearing something like that until he wakes up."

"... I need to put this beside him…"

It's noisy…

"Ugh…" I groaned as I slowly open my eyes.

As I open my eyes, I see the room's white ceiling, and a small chandelier hanging illuminates the whole room. Sitting on my bed, I look around my surrounding to see if there's someone in here with me, but no one is here. This is not my room or any room in my house, but I recognize this place. My mother used to bring me here sometime, this room is in The Church. This room is used to treat someone who is sick or wounded. Why am I here?

"Ouch…!" Suddenly, a headache kicks in. I instinctively hold the back of my head where it hurts the most.

I feel something wrapped around my head. I don't know what this is as I don't have a memory of wearing a headband or such. I accidentally take it off without thinking, then realized I did a mistake.

"... a bandage?" I widen my eyes in surprise.

The bandage seems to absorb a lot of blood judging by the dark red color.

'Is it my blood?!' My brain automatically has such thoughts.

I rub my head carefully, panicking seeing the amount of blood on it. I explored my head as I run my hands to my hair, trying to look where the wound is, but I can't seem to find any traces of the wound. There's not even a single drop of blood on my hands. I'm making sure the back of my head is truly fine since that's where the headache was. When suddenly, I feel like someone is coming. I look at the door, and it opens a few seconds right after. A sister comes with a tray in her hands, then she notices me.

"Oh, you already- What are you doing?!" She suddenly raises her voice and rushes toward me.

"Why are you taking the bandage off?! Can't you see that you're hurt right now?!" After she puts the tray on the table next to me, she sits on edge of the bed.

"I- I'm sorry…"

She picks up the bandage and looks at it for a second, then she looks at me with slight anger mixed with worry.

"Look at the amount of blood you've loss…" She mumbles, but I can hear her clearly before she continues as she touches and inspects my body, "Are you hurt somewhere?"

I shake my head. She sighs in relief, then she gets up and looks at me.

"I'm going to pick more bandages, okay? I'm sure you're hungry, so I prepared a soup for you. Eat it while it warms will you?" She indicates the tray on the table, there is a bowl and a glass of water on it. "I'll be right back, I also need to call The Seneschal noticing him you're awake." She smiles warmly at me and then leaves and closes the door.

*grumble*

"I guess I'm hungry." I shrug.

I lift the blanket to get off the bed and walk toward the table to pick up the food. Just when I put my feet on the floor, I feel something sticking on my chest. This sensation is the same as the one on my head. I lift my shirt to the top revealing another bandage wrapped around my chest and left shoulder. This bandage is also covered in dark red color, the amount seems to be much more than the one on my head. I'm trying to touch it as gently as possible, but there's no pain at all. Curiosity gets better on me once again, I remove the bandage carefully.

"Oh my…" I whisper while touching my left chest. My jaw drops slightly and my eyes widen, I couldn't hide my surprise at what I'm witnessing.

Medium size scar is left on my left chest, and the position itself is right on my heart. If I look closely, the size is almost as big and wide as a blade, as if I was pierced in the heart. Although it looks dreadful as a scar, I can't help but feel relieved a little since it's already healed completely. I decide to put it aside from my mind, now I feel hungry, so I walk toward the table to pick my food up.

As I stand before the food, I noticed something eye-catching lying next to the tray. It is glowing light green and I know exactly what this is. An orb-shaped gem inlaid within a pair of tri-feathered wings, with a diamond-shaped tail on the bottom and five spikes at the top. On the back, there are three wing-like decorations along the bottom on one side.

"A vision?" I picked it up and observed it closely, this is the first time I see a vision up close in my life.

"It looks pretty. But why is it lying here? Whose is this?" I asked to particularly no one since I don't remember owning a vision. So I just put it back where it was.

While I'm sitting on my bed eating the soup, I can tell some presences are closing by. The door is open, the sister is back with another two figures behind her. They come in one by one, I recognized those two within a second. They notice me still eating my soup, so I stop.

"Please don't mind us, feel free to keep eating. I'm sure you're quite hungry since you're recovering." Assured the man in white and red vestment. He wears a white miter and circular glasses. He's the Seneschal of the Church of Favonius, one of the leaders of Mondsatdt. He's very considerate to let me eat my soup back, but I choose not to since it would be inappropriate, so I shook my head.

"I've eaten enough."

"Hmm? Is your head already recovered?" The other man spoke to me with a curious expression. He's the Grand Master of the Knight of Favonius, anyone in Mondstadt knows who he is.

(A/N: So far we don't know what Varka looks like, so I can't describe him. There's just very little info about his appearance, all I know is he's a tall guy based on Razor's stories.)

"Ah, right. Let me patch your head with a new bandage." The sister comes close to me with a fresh bandage in her hand.

"T-there's no need for that, my wound is already healed completely." I put both my hands in front of me and shook my head lightly.

"What are you talking about? You still need treatment for your injury."

Now she's sitting on the edge of the bed, shoving her way to put the bandage on my head, again. I want to resist as hard as I could but at the same time, I don't want to be harsh to her. So I took the initiative to resist and show her that I'm fine.

"Please look at this! There's no trace on my head that I'm hurt, is there?" I show the back of my head to her.

I'm facing the wall and I couldn't see their faces or reactions right now, but I can tell they're looking at the back of my head making sure I'm telling the truth. The sister comes closer, I feel her touching my head gently. Then I heard a gasp from her.

"Huh?! There's really no injury on his head… How could this be? You were bleeding quite severely this morning, how is it already healed?!" Now she's touching my head quite rough as my head is being pushed forward.

"Dear Barbatos… What a miracle…" Even the Seneschal finds it hard to believe.

"You already recovered in that short amount of time, huh?"

'Was it that bad, though?' I wondered. So I decided to ask.

"Was I in that bad condition?"

The sister confuses for a second, and the Seneschal and the Grand Master look at each other for a second before the Grand Master answers my question.

"Well, if that is what you are wondering, all I can say is that you were gravely injured that we thought it was already too late to save your life. But somehow, you still breathing with all the injuries you sustained." He smiled bitterly after saying that.

His word worries me, how am I still alive is the question I had for myself for a moment now. My memories kind of blur all the way, all I remember is I was on my way home with my parents, then nothing else. The headache I had a few minutes ago is back, I hissed as I hold my forehead tightly.

"Are you okay? Is your head still hurt?"

"Please don't worry. It's just a headache, nothing to worry about." I release my hand despite the pain still there.

"I think you should rest, kid. Hopefully, it helps you reduce the pain and recover faster." The Grand Master said, then he mumbles, "I just have to ask you next time…"

"Ask me what, Grand Master Varka?"

"Huh?" He sounds more surprised than I thought.

"You said you have something to ask me, feel free to ask me. I gladly help if I can." I smiled at him.

"You want to ask him now?" The Seneschal seems to be not pleased with the Grand Master.

"Wait, you heard me?"

"Uh, yes?" I answered. 'Did he expect me not to hear that?'

The Grand Master widens his eyes for a second then chuckles before replying, "I think the question can wait, you should just focus on recovering for now. I'll take my leave now, all that matter is that he's alright." He excuses himself to leave the room.

When he was about to close the door, I thanked him for his visit. He just smiles and nodded, then closes the door. The room is now filled with two people besides me. After looking at the Grand Master figure leaving the room, the Seneschal looks at me.

"Morgan, are you really feeling okay? If you feel hurt or something is bothering you, please don't hesitate to tell me."

"Thank you, but as you can see, I'm fine."

"I'm very glad to hear that. I still couldn't believe what happened to you this morning."

Right, I forgot the reason why I was brought here. They said they found me gravely injured this morning, and said nothing more. This means they know nothing about what happened, but I don't know even know what happened to me either. It is safe to say it happened yesterday, the questions are where and what happened? I guess I can at least ask for the former.

"Seneschal, may I ask you what happened?"

"You don't remember?"

I nodded. Why would I lie about it? Especially knowing me in this state.

The Seneschal looks at the Sister sitting next to me, then says, "Please give me a moment." They went to the corner of the room whispering about something, they probably thought I don't hear them when in reality, I hear them quite clearly. I just stay quiet.

"Morgan seems to suffer an amnesia."

"You're right. I think we shouldn't tell him about what happened, especially what happened to his parents."

Hearing the last part makes me immediately slide off the bed to stand up and ask, "My parents? What happened to them?"

Suddenly hearing me speak while they were whispering obviously surprise them, they even got confused for a second before saying something.

"M-Morgan? You heard us?"

"What happened to parents? Where are they? Are they suffered the same injuries as I was?"

I barrage them with questions, I feel my heart racing because panicking. My mind fills with nothing but worrying about them right now.

"Wait, please calm down, you need to-"

"Calm down?! Knowing something happened to my parents?!" I cut her.

"Morgan, listen to me. You need to rest to recover your condition."

"I don't need sleep, I need an answer!"

They reeled hearing me say that, that was the first time I shout after I woke up. I can see the Seneschal and the Sister seems uncomfortable and aren't ready to answer my question, their expressions are obvious. I can feel all the emotions in me bursting at this moment, but for some reason, my head still can think clearly despite that. I just yelled at them without giving them a chance to explain, I need to apologize.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to raise my voice." I lowered my head as I said that. "It just…" I wanted to continue, but I don't know what to say to them.

The Seneschal and the Sister looked surprised yet relieved by my sudden apology, they gently smiled. The Sister approached me and pat my shoulder, "It's alright, we apologize for not being able to tell you because…" She seemed to hesitate to continue her sentence.

"You bound to know sooner or later anyway, we just feel like your current state isn't ready to accept the truth."

"I'm ready." I said it without a hint of doubt.

They look at me, looking into my eyes and I look at them back showing my conviction. I resolved myself that I'm ready to take the truth. I can't remember what happened, but that doesn't matter. The truth is in front of me, but what is this feeling I have? I feel restless.

"Can you please prepare a tea for him?"

The Seneschal asks the sister and she nods, she throws a glance at me for a second before she leaves. The Seneschal walks to my side picks a chair nearby then sits on it, he faces me but he didn't speak for a while.

"Uh, is something the matter?" I asked.

Then he closes his eyes as he holds his hands together firmly, looking down. He mumbles something, but I didn't catch what he said. He raises his head to look at me again, sighing before speaking,

"Alright, Morgan. I want you to relax and calm down before I'm telling you what happened."

I stay quiet without looking away from him. He said that to me, but I can't help to feel nervous as this goes on I try my best to not show it. I could say the same goes for him. The Seneschal seems hesitant to tell me as his mouth agape like the words are stuck in his throat. But that doesn't last long before he started talking.

"Morgan, your parents… already passed away when we found you."

"What…" The only word came out of me.

"Passed… away?" I repeat his words.

My mind went blank there, I couldn't think of anything. Processing what he said, suddenly I feel a memory surge. A bright light flashed before my eyes, blinding me for a moment. My ears buzz loudly, making me hear nothing. I hold my head tightly, the headache I got is nothing like before, my head feels like going to burst. I hiss as I pulled my knees close and then curled my body. The memory… they all come back to me, forcing their way into my head. Replaying the event that happened in my head.

"Argh…!" I groaned.

When I open my eyes, I see myself, and my parents on the ground while a man with a sword walks toward them. My father trying to protect me and my mother, he even begs for mercy in front of the man. I remember the feeling I had that night, and I can see it clearly on my face as I stand here. Fear and hopelessness, I could feel death was nearing. But the man didn't even bat an eye before striking my father. My mother shrieks seeing what she saw, the man walks toward her with his sword still dripping blood. My mother crawls backward, trying to run from him, but it was futile. Once she was in his range of attack, he strikes her.

While I was just… Sitting there, shaking, couldn't do anything. Like a coward…

[What can you do? You're powerless, you can't protect anyone even if you want to.]

"Khh… Shut up!" I clench my teeth.

I feel my body trembling, but all pains I felt have subsided. I'm starting to feel my senses are back to reality. Opening my eyes as I release my hands from my head, I stare at my palms, they are shaking. Then suddenly I felt a pat on my shoulder, it was The Seneschal.

"Morgan! Can you hear me?!"

"... Yeah, I'm so sorry. I was lost in my thought."

He didn't seem convinced by my words, his worried expression still there but he decided not to ask me any further and sat back. I'm still staring at my palms, trying to calm myself by breathing deeply and slowly. Takes a few minutes until I can feel a bit relaxed, my heart beating at a normal speed too. I raise my head and sigh, then look at The Seneschal.

"Do you… feel any better?"

It seems he knew I was trying to relax, so he leaves me alone for a moment. By sitting closely with me, he would know if anything about me is off so he can act accordingly.

"Thank you, I feel a bit better now. I guess…" I can't tell what expression my face is showing right now, but I hope he's convinced this time.

"I see. As I thought, telling you what happened now is bad timing. I shouldn't-" I cut him.

"Please don't worry about me, I'm the one asking you to tell me. I'm thankful for listening to my request." I bow lightly to him.

The Seneschal doesn't say anything, or to be exact, he doesn't know what to say. When he was about to speak, the door opened. It was the Sister, she brings a tray in her hands.

"Your tea is ready." She sits on the edge of the bed, then gives me a cup filled with tea.

"Thank you very much." I thanked her as I take it.

Before drinking it, the fragrance of the tea gets into my nose. It smells nice and makes me relax. I take a sip, then gulp it in one go. My throat felt dry, so I just finished it quickly.

"You don't look good. You should take a rest now." She said after taking a good look at me.

"She's right. You might need more time to digest what I said to you, we can continue the next time you're in better condition."

They get up from their positions and leave the room, but before closing the door, the Seneschal said another thing to me.

"If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask me or one of the Sisters, okay?"

They closed the door. I threw myself onto the bed while spreading my arms, the bed made a creaking noise as I dropped. I stare at the ceiling as the light brightens my face, my mind is surprisingly clear after all of that. After hearing what happened and all the pains that I had after recalling the event, somehow it doesn't affect me as much as I thought it would.

Though I can't deny that makes me feel exhausted, and I don't want to sleep yet, so I get up once again. I noticed there's a window in this room that is still open. The afternoon sun illuminates through the window, bathing some part of the room. The view from the window is good, I can see Cider Lake from here. The water reflects the sunset, the trees near the lake dance as the wind blows, and birds fly in the sky to return to their nest.

I put my hands on the window to support my body as I enjoy the view.

I said my mind is clear, but my heart doesn't seem to feel the same way. There are some complicated feelings that I couldn't put into words the feeling I have right now, encumber my chest.

My parents have died. That is the most bitter news I ever got and I doubt there would be anything worse than that. My mind went blank for a while until I came to my sense, I even panicked. Thinking about it again makes my blood boils, making me feel furious.

[Why?]

"I-… Myself." I mumble as I look down.

That's right, I feel angry and disappointed in myself.

[Why would you? Are you regretting something you can't control?]

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do?!" I snapped.

"..." Silence.

[You are in grief.]

"Am I?" I scoffed.

"..." Another silence.

I feel drained today. I drop my shoulders as I look down to my feet, my vision becomes blurry after. My nose feels stuffed, so I sniff trying to clear my nostrils. Without my notice, a droplet drops to my feet, another and a few more following. It took me a while to notice something dripping from my eyes to my cheek, I wipe it with my hand.

"I'm… crying?" I stammered realizing I'm shedding tears right now.

I hurriedly wipe my tears with my sleeves.

[Just let it out. No one is here.]

"No… I…" I meekly said. My voice cracked.

I don't know what to do. My knees feel weak, I just drop down without showing resistance. Dragging my feet closer, I hugged my legs tightly and burrowed my face in my knees. Letting these complicated feelings take control of me, flowing out like a strong stream of emotions. I feel tears keep flowing as I squeeze my legs vigorously to a point my legs almost feel numb.

I spend a lot of time sitting in that position, trying to make myself feel better. As this goes on, my eyes start to feel drowsy, and without me noticing, I fell asleep.

TO BE CONTINUED…


A/N: The second chapter comes out. I don't have a lot to say honestly, update probably takes a week or a couple depending on my IRL stuff. I want to say thank you for reading this fic. As always, correction or constructive criticism comments are appreciated! See you!